2014-15 in Gregorian football
The 2014-15 season was the 36th season of professional association football in St. Gregory. Preseason Other changes * The SGFA announced that, beginning with the 2014-15 season, the away goals rule would be scrapped from its playoff series. If the aggregate score is tied after the second leg - regardless of the number of goals scored by the away team in either leg - extra time will be played, followed by a penalty shoot-out, if necessary. * League A will play a match on Thanksgiving (November 27, 2014) for the first time. The match will be played between Midland International and New Castle at QuickCash Stadium. SGFA Shield :Main article: 2014 SGFA Shield The 2014 SGFA Shield Match was played between defending League A champions, FC Chapman, and League A runners-up, Bonneville United, who qualified for the match as Chapman had also won the SGFA Cup. Mack |stadium = National Cricket Ground, Warner Bay|time = 16:00 AST}} League A :Main article: 2014-15 League A season Despite losing their second match of the season, a stunning 4-3 loss away at Manorham in which they led 3-0 at half-time, FC Chapman quickly rebounded and went from strength to strength as they successfully defended their League A title, their fourth in the last seven seasons and eighth overall. Chapman also retained their SGFA Cup crown with an extra-time win over League B side Banks City, becoming the first club in Gregorian football history to win back-to-back league and cup doubles. Rivergate were second, never quite able to bounce back from a 3-0 defeat at Chapman on November 29 that set the tone for the rest of the season. Rivergate's defense, however, was the best in the league as Callum Casey won Goalkeeper of the Year honors for the second time in three seasons and Cornell Miller, who started out the season as a substitute, earned All-Star selection and his first call-up to the St. Gregory national team. SGFA Shield winners Bonneville United finished third, the most successful club in Gregorian history going their third straight year without a league or cup title. A final-day defeat at Zane Hills was a bitter swansong for striker Pavlo Ponomarenko, who left the club without a major championship. Manorham were the class of the field during the first two months of the season but fell away following an injury to star forward Manos Stefanidis and they were never able to recover. Second-generation striker Chase Morton was benched early in the season after a poor showing and the goals dried up as the club missed out on CONCACAF Champions League despite their best league finish since 2011-12. New Castle finally found their feet under Mark Rae and the signing of ex-Chapman striker David Oakley proved to be just what an ailing offense had needed, as the Reds built a 12-match unbeaten run between January and March to solidify a top five finish. Helena United were the surprise of the season. They went unbeaten in their first five thanks to a favorable draw before a 3-2 loss at then-top of the table Manorham, but a stunning upset of Bonneville United at Ford Stadium – the Tigers' first ever away win over the Dark Blues – was one of the key factors in a sixth-place finish that saw Rem Stahl awarded Manager of the Year. Forest United were blighted by injuries at key positions throughout the season and regressed from last year's fifth place finish but still managed to finish in the top half of the table, as did Little Rouge, who saw breakout seasons from Vaughn Greene and Brayden Carey to maintain their foothold in League A in their second season back in the top flight. Zane Hills started the season with a splash by signing former New Castle striker Jesús Luna, but he could never find a regular place on the score sheet and missed multiple games due to injury and suspension. Rounding out the top 10 were Independence, who sacked longtime manager Goran Šiljak after a disastrous start to the season. His replacement, Jeff Carruthers, inherited a club that was 15th and guided them to safety with one month left in the season. Winston Beach managed to avoid a second straight relegation playoff, using a strong start and finish to the season to offset a disappointing spell from December to March where they won just two games. Helena Point Rangers were also beset by injuries, particularly to English duo Jason Brammeld and Ben Walker, and needed a three-match win streak in April – including over local rivals United – to secure safety. Union Town flirted with relegation all season but solid performances from summer signing Danny Olorunda, and Joel Price – who turned down a return to FC Chapman in January to help the Cats stay in League A – helped the defending League B champions secure their spot in the top flight with wins in the final two matches of the season. Otway Town, who returned to League A along with Union, were not so fortunate. They opened the season on the wrong end of a 6-1 thumping at FC Chapman and the wins were few and far between. Merrickton managed the fewest goals in the league and a mid-season goalkeeping change, promoting Édison Cortéz to the starting role, could not save them. Midland International defied all odds to climb off the bottom of the table, where they had spent the first half of the season, and force a play-off against Port St. Christopher Pirates, but despite a late equalizer from Robert Beck, the Stallions were beaten on penalties and relegated from League A for the first time since arriving in the top flight in 1993-94. # FC Chapman (8th title; qualified for CONCACAF Champions League) # Rivergate (qualified for CONCACAF Champions League) # Bonneville United # Manorham # New Castle # Helena United # Forest United # Little Rouge # Zane Hills # Independence # Winston Beach # Helena Point Rangers # Union Town # Midland International (entered relegation playoff; see below) # Otway Town (relegated to League B) # Merrickton (relegated to League B) League B :Main article: 2014-15 League B season The 2014-15 League B season commenced on October 4, 2014 and concluded on May 2, 2015. The final standings of League B were as follows: # Banks City (promoted to League A) # Bonneville Juniors (promoted to League A) # Swifton Athletic (made playoffs) # Port St. Christopher Pirates (made playoffs) # Calabria # Starrs County # Cape Wells Wanderers # Crusaders # CGC Red Stars # Don Bosco # Carina City # Sparta Antillen # Bay View # Armed Forces (entered relegation playoff; see below) # Holland County (relegated to League C) # Old Boys (relegated to League C) A/B promotion playoffs Swifton Athletic and Port St. Christopher Pirates qualified for the promotion playoffs. The teams played a two-leg tie, with the winner facing the 14th-placed team in League A. ---- Port St. Christopher Pirates won 4-2 on aggregate. A/B playoff final |goals2=Osborne |stadium = National Cricket Ground, Warner Bay|penaltyscore =3-4 |time = 16:00 AST|attendance = 27,158}}Port St. Christopher Pirates were promoted to League A, while Midland International were relegated to League B. League C :Main article: 2014-15 League C season The 2014-15 League C season commenced on October 4, 2014 and concluded on May 2, 2015. The final standings of League C were as follows: # Eventide (promoted to League B) # Eastport Americans (promoted to League B) # Red Devils (made playoffs) # Highlanders (made playoffs) # Western Sun # Fort-de-Vert # Barbarians # White Bay Rovers # Scorpio FC # Black Lions # Madison Island # Carlisle # Royal Guards # Acadia United # Green Island # Stanhope United (relegated to Amateur Leagues) B/C promotion playoffs Red Devils and Highlanders qualified for the promotion playoffs. The teams played a two-leg tie, with the winner facing the 14th-placed team in League B. ---- Highlanders won 4-2 on aggregate. B/C playoff final Highlanders were promoted to League B, while Armed Forces were relegated to League C. SGFA Cup :Main article: 2014-15 SGFA Cup Final :Main article'': 2015 SGFA Cup Final'' Ramakers Budd |goals2 = Winchester Webster }} Category:Season pages Category:2014-15 in Gregorian football